tired of seeing this sitting there, guess the OP is gone

Hi Jeff . A big Hello to you and LaVonne, PICS ! __________________________________________________________ PALM TREES IN TENNESSEE , YEP , WE GOT 'EM. Here is the Florida state tree and the South Carolina state tree growing in the Cumberland Plateau Area / Highland Rim . THE SABAL PALMETTO - aka Cabbage Palm of the deep south : There are techniques to follow when caring for palms in Tennessee. The top photo is a b/b ( balled up in burlap ) and installed as a larger palm. These sometime require a little protection on a handful of winter nights. The second photo is trunking palmettos planted as 5 gallon potted palms about 8 years ago. These palms have defoliated during a couple of bad winters but have survived and look fine today. You cant just stick one in the ground and scream Eureka , paradise found, there are minor maintenance requirements for tropicals in most pasts of Tennessee. I would be willing to offer any advice to anyone in need as all the other palm growers here would be. Just ask us. That is the Sabal Palmetto. Here is the Chinese Windmill Palm * not the Chinese fan palm. and below it another couple of Windmill Palms ( Trachycarpus Fortunei ) as they appear after a bout of several lows near 3*f on several occasions this past winter , they were unprotected and tropical storm force winds accompanied those low temps if you remember the cold wind storms we had. these palms are old and were planted as small potted palms. It seems smaller palms appear hardier when allowed to acclimated to our climate. Again , they are minor techniques in growing these palms also. All these palms survived -8* f on two different occasions in Jan.2003. Here is a Washington Robusta (Mexican Fan Palm) that has to be trimmed back in October and covered with a garbage can to keep moisture away for survival , but its worth having a palm like this growing where it shouldn't. Many gardeners dont like alien plants in the gardens but if you take a look at many we grow , very few are native to our region. Here is the awesome Musa Basjoo Banana tree they makes a come back every spring in Tennessee. this is a Japanese variety. The south American varieties can be grown here but are dig and store in the winter and these sometimes produce sweet small fruit. and the Ice Angel Camellia blooms and puts on quite a show here in the highlands during late winter: If I can do it here NORTH of Cookeville and Crossville , anyone in Tennessee can. We have the states worst winter conditions. If you really want to see Tropicals in Action , I suggest you visit Buckys link he provided above. The Southern Tennessee palm growers have been doing this for many,many years and have huge specimens to show that growing tropicals in possible with minimum care , and last but not least is a photo taken at my house recently of Tennessee's Oldest and Youngest palm growers. Mr. Charles Cole met Lane friday at a palm gathering at my house in North Tennesee . There is a 65 year difference in their ages and they are both devout palm growers. Mr. Cole is Tennessees'palm God Father and has been growing palms way before Lane's parents were born. Half a century as a matter of fact. Lane is a grower of Coco - Butia - Windmill - Triangle - Robusta - Filifera - Date - Chineses - Areca - Bottle - and many varieties of the aforementioned and even more exotic palms and plants. There could be others that may be as young as him that has a palm tree but he buys , plants , protects , researches all his work. Mr. Cole loves meeting palm growers and is having an open house in SEPT. at his home in Quebec , Tennessee. He especially liked meeting lane. He told me that it reminds him of when he was a young boy and got struck by palm fever. To all that visited that day , thanks for making it a nice one for Mr.Cole. Thanks Lane. Thanks everybody. mountain-grown aka Rob No.Tn.Plateau

Love seeing all the lovely trees. This thread has definitely made me smile! Ours is an eclectic "memory" tree also. Our kids are aged five and nine so we have many ornaments made by them and also let them pick out one or two each year to add to the tree. We also have many that have been given to us and purchased, handed down, etc. It makes for a merry mix! Every year we go get a fresh tree, either a Frasier Fir or a Blue Spruce. The past couple of years we went with Blue Spruce because the branches are sturdier and can hold the heavier ornaments better than the Frasier. But I got really cut up after doing the lights. Back to the Frasier next year! Our angel was crooked at the time: And a shot w/ our reading corner that has our advent tree in view: MY yearly ornament purchase of this year. My Dwight bobblehead. How's this for fun?! Here he is set back in the tree: This ornament looks almost just like our Havanese dog, Luke. I had to buy it: Yoda (We have a strange amount of classic Star Wars and Disney ornaments on the tree): My Mardi Gras Crawfish I've had for years: One of our LSU Ornaments: A really pretty ornament I found this year also. Just white, pearly and lovely: This is my Sweets Tree in our casual dining room. I created it last year after seeing a larger version in a store while shopping with my mother. I've always loved white trees but we always get a live tree. This is my way of having a fun, white, colorful, themed tree of my own. My DD and I had a lot of fun setting it up this year: Another shot of it in the room: My console table I did for the first time this year (On a side note - see that green tree by the red lit one? I didn't realize that my 9 y.o. DS had taken my other two trees, a shorter green one I'd put to the left of the tiered stand and a silver mirrored one I'd put by the red & green trees, and stacked them UNDER the big green one. It'd been like that for two weeks before I caught it! Little sneak!) : Oh, my DD and DS also have tabletop trees in their rooms on each of their dressers with the tiny ornaments on them just for them. It seems like every time I go in my 5 y.o.'s room, something new is hanging on there. Last night her 3" tall Wizard of Oz Tin Man was hooked on their with the hanger from a new pair of tights we opened. Inventive. I should've taken pictures of them too but didn't think about it and now they're asleep. I've been wordy. This is an enjoyable thread!

General updates: Oaks: Most of my oaks are finally done growing. I have one michauxii still hardening off some growth, one bicolor, and my x schuettei (which is 2 yrs old). Thankfully our hard freezes don't usually kick in until mid-Nov at least, so they should be just fine. Maples: All still have some soft new growth except the triflorum, which set a terminal bud in August. The buergerianums appear to be slowing/terminating growth as does the nigrum (which is now 25" tall!). I have a palmatum still growing actively, and a japonicum still chugging along. Magnolia grandiflora: Two specimens, seem to have stopped growing. One has a leaf still expanding, but doesn't have another unfolding in the terminal bud. Taxodium: all three seem to be setting buds now. Metasequoia: single second-year specimen, seems to have reached that stage where growth is still soft, but is now setting up to stop growing for the season (from past experience, they take on a slightly different appearance at this point). Cercis: Done growing for the season. Nyssa: Finally set terminal buds, still hardening the growth. Odd since more mature specimens are actually starting to show hints of color - these seedlings are still green. About 30" tall. Cornus kousa: Done. Some hints of red in the foliage the last few days, but mostly green.